A Fly in the Ointment
by NeonZangetsu
Summary: Nothing is perfect. No one is flawless. Not all ideas are meant to succeed. For we all are flawed, each and every one of us, and even the most carefully laid plans can go horribly awry. Sometimes there's a Fly in the Ointment. And sometimes, a single fly is all it takes to change everything. But what is she to a fly, and what is a fly to her? NarutoxMiranda. Action, Romance.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Alright ladies and gentlmen, good news and bad news. Good news first. I'm fresh out of ANOTHER surgery-hurts like hell, and my girl came back to me. Even better, My grandmother's all but recovered from congestive heart failure. Alas, my health is still in the red, and the docs say it ain't looking good. So...I just...wanted to let you all know about this. Somehow. Just in case death has plans to take me out of this sick body of mine...hopefull it won't!**

**Anywho, I managed to put this up here at points between the forced anesthetic. Bad news is I still have more surgeries ahead. It's been great, guys. Really. ****I'm hanging tough though, despite everything life is throwing at me. Despite all that's happening, I don't intend to die quietly in a bed somewhere! And on that note I thought I ought to try something new: we haven't seen a single good NarutoxMiranda fic on this site.**

**...lets remedy that, shall we? I present to you...**

_"Perfection is but a word..._

_~?_

**A Fly in the Ointment**

Henry Lawson was on the verge of another scientific breakthrough. This wasn't his first of course; he'd done much work in the service of Cerberus, but in his mind _this_ far outstripped the goals of the pro-human activist group whose continued activity was largely sustained by his generous donations. Narcissim aside however, this was more of a personal project. This would be his legacy. He would create the pefect human being, cloned from his very DNA. But in order to do that, he needed a viable test subject. A prototype, if you will.

The Illusive Man had recently provided him with just that.

This precursor to his legacy, the harbinger of the foundation he would build, would not come from his genetic code. Not at all. Flash cloned from a DNA sample so ancient it made the Protheans themselves look young in comparison, this single cell contained the might of an ancient people. Human people. It was said that the warriors of this era were gifted with superhuman abilities, that would make even the Asari green with envy, nigh but peerless in their affinity for destruction.

Shinobi, they were called. This sample had been very hard to come by, supposedly it had been sequested in a museum somewhere on the outer fringes of Council space. The Citadel Council. Bah! They cared nothing for humanity; for all mankind's advancements they were seen as the interlopers, the new kid on the playground. They'd given the turians a black eye during the First Contact War, and likely would've done much more than that were it not for the Counci's untimely invervention. The allied races feared humanity.

So the Council jealously guarded their coveted seats, stubbornly refusing to grant humans a place among them, their Spectre's, or even a place in citadel security, or C-sec, as the term was being coined. No, in Henry's eyes-and the eyes of the Illusive Man-it was left to mankind to advance their own interests. That was what Cerberus stood for. It was the sword of humanity and its shield, dedicated to preserving and protecting human interests. No more, no less.

Ah, but he digressed.

This would be his crowning achievement, the last of the Shinobi people, restored and reborn in his image. If all else should fail, well, subject would at the very least, become an accomplished killer in his service. He was already owed a few favors by Cerberus itself, but it never hurt to keep one's cards close to their chest. The subject's predeccessor had a name, Henry realized,and he had seen fit "allow" him to keep it. There would be no _fly in the ointment_, as the proverbial saying went. Everything else would procceed according to plan.

The boy's name would be...

* * *

_(Sixteen years later...)_

"Naruto!"

Sleep-gummed eyes cracked open at the sound of that familiar voice, sapphire orbs blearily taking in the world. The room seemed to swim, as though the entire complex was being tossed amidst stormy ocean currents and about to pitch under at any moment. The boy, all of sixteen years, solemnly swore to ignore she who was responsible for waking him from his dreamless sleep. Sadly, that was not to be. A flung pillow sailed across the room, and while he could under most circumstances, easily dodge such a projectile, he failed to account for the biotic field surrounding the flying weapon.

"Oof!"

End _result,_ the feathery softness of the pillow smacked him right in the face, further incensing the blond and exacerbating the pounding headache in his skull. Doctor Henry Lawson-the man he refused to call father-had put him through another hellish regiment of testing only a few hours prior, and this was his only chance to rest. His body ached in places he didn't even know he had, and his recently installed amp was still shooting hot spikes of agony up and down his spine now that he was awake again. Thankfully there were no visions to haunt him this time, no images of a previous life to torrment his brain with their that made little no sense to him with their sights and their sounds and all manner of infuriating emotions.

No, there was just _soooooomeone_ who liked pelting others with pillows, apparently!

"Miri," he groaned into the darkness, "Do you have any idea what _time_ it is?"

"That doesn't matter." A soft, accented voice replied as he picked himself up off the floor. "This is important."

"It. Is. Two. In. The Morning." Naruto ground out as his blue eyes locked with her hazel, emphasizing the last word with a sharp click of his teeth. "How important can this be?!"

"Very."

Miranda Lawson was only fourteeen years old but anyone could see she would grow up to be a fine woman someday, most certainly an even deadlier biotic. But this very moment, she was merely a young, awkward girl taking her first strides into adolescence, inching forwards into a life that would someday day shape her into a cold _severe_ ice queen nearly incapable of caring for anything other than the mission. That day was not today however, and Naruto found himself all too willing to bury he with her own pillow. Posthumously, of course.

"Miranda...

The raven-haired girl raised an eyebrow archly, but if he knew female expressions, she was not entirely unafraid. "Do you want to hear this, or not?" There it was again. That accent.

Something he thanked kami he hadn't picked up in the last sixteen years of his existence. He had been 'born' before Miranda, vat grown from and flash cloned from the DNA of some great warrior. That damned doctor wouldn't say who of course but Naruto had his suspicions. For starters he knew he hadn't been cloned from the man's genetic code-another blessing for which he was exceedingly grateful-unlike Miranda. Although she wasn't his sister by blood, he considered her the closest thing he had to family. Her and one other. And yet for all their gifts, they couldn't have been more dissimilair. It wasn't just his biotic prowess. It was something different. Something...

_More._

For all his destructive potential, he had access to abilites and techniques most biotics would balk at. He could walk on walls and water, produce fire with a single breath, bend the very air currents to his will. Abilities he alone could wield, gifts that were kept under lock and key by Henry Lawson. This infernal collar on his neck saw to that; only the doctor's DNA could unlock it. But even if he had been freed from these shackles none of his gifts would've served him now, nor would his biotics, as he stared down at Miranda Lawson.

"For crying out loud...?"

His words trailed off when he saw the tears in those dark orbs. Her face was tight, almost a rictus of panic, her eyes wide. Something was wrong, he realized. Something was very wrong. He suddenly realized she had a sidearm, a phalanx pistol strapped to her still-slender waist. Where had she gotten it, he wondered? Had she stolenit from one of the guards? It looked so out of place amidst her pajama that he almost laughed. But the steely look in her eyes stopped him and he saw for the first time, the splotch of blood on her hand. Oh no. _Gods, Miri..._Suddenly the idea of her taking down a guard didn't seem so ludicrous. But why, oh why would she be armed...?

"I'm leaving." she stepped forward and waved her omni tool at him; his collar opened with a soft click and clattered to the floor. He swiftly kicked it away, sending the device skittering under the bed.

Ah. That was it. Strength came surging back to him, his weary limbs tingling with a sudden anxiety that all but pushed the weariness to the back of his mind. He was standing almost before he realized it, his body numb with the realization that something awful had happened. He clasped her by the shoulders, suddenly aware of her own trembling.

"What did you do?" he whispered.

"W-What I had to," she hiccuped once before forcing her voice back under control. "I overhead one of the guards talking. Father_-Henry,"_ she choked, her words breaking once more with emotion, "Finally made his decision . I'm not good enough, not anymore. They were going to kill me." Her hand strayed to the phalanx, as though she could somehow draw strength from the pistol's prescence. "So before they could, I...hurt them." The words seemed to twist at her, warping her visage into a pained, determined rictus. "And I'm taking Ori with me. I won't let him use he like he's used me. _Us."_ she ammended the last with a slight flush, her cheeks burning ever so lightly at the end.

Naruto stubbornly swept those feelings under the rug, acknowledging but refusing to speak of them. Now was not the time for such things. Instead, he turned his attention to

"She's only ten months old. You can't be certain-

"I'm more than certain!" her voice rose, piquing in distress. "You know we're not the first! We're just the first ones he _kept!"_

"That doesn't change the fact that we're kidnapping a kid!" Realizing he was shouting, the blond drew inward on himself, contemplating. Miranda's rebellion had already begun, once they discovered she'd attacked one of the guards and unshackled him, her punishment was likely to be severe. And truth be told, Naruto was growing tired of his captivity. He wanted to see the world, explore the vast reaches of space. Discover where a young boy named Uzumaki Naruto had come from and find his place in the galaxy. He couldn't accomplish any of that here.

"If we're going to do this, we'll do it my way."

Miranda went from taking a full step back from his fury, to standing firm with her face white and still, fists clenched at her sides. She felt like he was trying to melt her alive with his gleaming silver-blue eyes. There was an apprehensive moment when he wasn't sure what she would do - she looked torn between attacking him, running, or crying. At last, she nodded tightly. "A-Alright."

"You got another weapon I can use?"

She shook her head. "Just a grenade."

"Shit." he spit, pocketing the proffered token. "Guess we'll have to do this the old fashioned way...

Miranda didn't know what to say to that. Her father had savagely berated her mistakes, both real and perceived; endlessly accusing her of sloth, idiocy, sloppiness - whatever he could seize upon. When she had done everything to perfect precision and nothing could be found wrong, he simply said nothing at all.

Naruto had only ever offered her encouragement; he understood the pressure to be perfect and he was not cowed by it. He didn't care what her father thought of him, he was too valuable to be disposed of at least until another sample was procurred; the first had been all but exhausted in creating him. He was the first, and he was the last of a proud people. But most of all...

A Fly in the Ointment.

* * *

"A fine effort, boy."

On his knees, with one hand on the ground of the hangar bay floors, Naruto spit out a mouthful of bloody saliva, shaking his head to clear it. His other arm was cradled protectively against his stomach, the broken and throbbing wrist pressed against what he suspected was a broken rib. At the top of his field of view were the black boots of Cerberus Assasin Kai Leng, who placed his hands behind his back and paced as he spoke to his broken prey. Rather, he thought his target disabled. Naruto silently swore to remind him of that mistake.

"Fucking...Cerberus...

"Cerberus?" The asian sniffed. "Oh no, this is personal, kid. Wish I could say it wasn't, but I owe Mr Lawson a few...favors. He asked me to track you and the brats down. Purely off the record, of course. Now, I'm going to give you one last chance to tell me where you hid the bitch and her little sister. Do that, and I might end you quickly." He could barely hear the man over the alarms, those sirens loudly declaring the trio's seemingly failed esape attempt. But it hadn't failed, not yet. So long as they got out before the guards arrived.

_Still got a chance, champ._ he remined himself. Just hang in there. Don't let him get to you.

Somehow, Naruto found the strength to spit on those pristine black boots. That earned him another kick in the teeth. Inside, he cringed, wincing as he felt something chip. If only Kai Leng knew how close he truly was; that first shuttle had been little more than a diversion, Miranda and Ori were safely tucked away only a few shuttles down the bay. He just had to get rid of this fucker first...

"I don't like that look in your eye." Kai Leng observed. "We'll have to do something about that."

THRUCK. The dark-haired man dashed forward and drove his fist deep into Naruto's gut, doubling him over.

BLAM! An uppercut caught the aspiring shinobi's jaw with full force, snapping his head back.

CRUNCH. Leng's thrust-kick smashed into the boy's face, crushing capillaries.

Naruto bunched inward, trying to blot out the girl's whimper. Just a little longer.

_**BA-KRANG!**_

Leng jerked as a hole opened in his right shoulder; the wound misting with bood. Miranda's shot was off the mark-she'd been aiming for his head instead. But the shot was more than enough, it spun Kai Leng around in a tizzy, momentarily presenting his back to Naruto. That was all it took.

"Burn, _bitch."_

Kai Leng never saw the grenade that killed him; he felt only the slight impact of something sticking to his back, heard the boy's words hiss in his ear. Then the explosion came, fire and the flames washing over his plain clothes and incinerating them in the next instant. He'd just enough to curse himself for not wearing his armor. By then, the sheer velocity of the blast flung him against the wall with enough force to snap his spine like a rotten twig. It was a fitting death, all things considered, one undeserving of a man who'd killed and maimed many.

Naruto was caught in the blast as well, the shockwave violently throwing him against the shuttle. He felt a pair of slim hands grasp at his arms and drag him inside. Somewheres out of sight, he could hear Oriana crying loud and fierce, doubtlessly distressed to the fires and explosions raging around the shuttle. Naruto half-dragged, half crawled his way onto the metal bench that served as a seat, realizing only dimly that Miranda had'd spirited her sister away into the cockpit. He himself was in no shape to follow, he could feel a broken rib pressing against his lung, eliciting sharp, pained breaths.

"Move, you ass! Move!" Miri was shouting at the shuttle, clamoring to get into the cockpit and get it off the ground. Naruto groaned and delved into that dark place of his mind, that secret sanctuary where no one could touch him. A switch flipped. The shuttled suddenly lurched upward, the faint blue sheen of biotics wreathing it from port to stern. And just in time. A smattering of gunfire ripped up against his impromptu-and looking a bit back, unintended-barrier, pinging harmlessly aside. But the effort required to lift and simultaneously shield the kodiak was draining; already he could feel the thin trickle of blood worming its way down his nose.

"Go go go!" he thumped on the barrier between the hold and the cockpit with his good hand, ignoring the blood seeping between his fingers.

The shuttle bucked wildly, as though it were trying to physically throw the three of them out. Somewhere outside, Henry's Lawson's voice roared over the loudspeakers:

"Children, set that shuttle down this instant!"

_"Like hell!"_

He felt, rather than heard Miranda gun the engines-the lack of dampners nearly squished him against the wall. The bay doors-left open by some stupid sod-hung there temptingly, the evening sky beckoning to them as they surged forward, freedom just out of reach. At the sight of Earth's starry skies Naruto let out a wild whoop, wincing as his lungs protested the action. They cleared the atmosphere almost immediately, hurtling forth from their prison and into space, the gilded cage that had held them all these longs years now long behind them.

"Hang tight," Miranda's voice, broken with relief, filtered through the speakers. "We're about to hit the relay."

"Any idea where we're going?"

"Honestly?"

"I'd prefer that." although he knew she couldn't see it, the blonde's deadpann was barely concealed.

"I have no idea." she admitted. "Near as I can tell, the coordinates are...just about anything." then, more wyrly, "How's the Citadel sound?"

"The heart of civilaztion, eh? Lovely."

She must've caught the hitch in his breath, because her voice came back sounding concerned.

"Naruto?"

"No, its nothing," He risked a glance down, suddenly aware of the shrapnel in his legs, the blood soaking through the pale fabric of his pants. "But...

"But?"

"I...might be bleeding out back here."

"Naruto!"

The blond allowed himself to slip then, his tenuous grip on reality slipping, then failing altogether. _Well,_ he mused before he passed out, _at least I killed Leng. Bastard. _He could vaguely hear Miranda calling to him, her dulcet tones desperately struggling to call him back from the brink. He could see her face now as they hit the relay-the ship's autopilot ferrying them to their destination whilst she struggled to apply first aid. Even then, Naruto permitted himself the slightest of smiles, knowing that if he was to die, he'd at least put some good into the world, and taken something bad out of it. Kai Leng was dead.

His mark had ben made.

Perhaps one of the most accomplished killers the galaxy'd had never known was dead now, his role in future events utterly obliterated. Miranda Lawson escaped her father's clutches that day, her baby sister and a very battered blond in tow. And all because of...

_...a fly in the ointment._

**A/N: And there we go. I decided Mirana finally deserved her due; we all know she had such a horrible childhood, and to top it off, it gave me a GREAT chance to introduce Naruto as a defining and very real element in her life, rather than Niket. And Naruto took out Leng! Granted in his current state he wouldn't stand a chance in hell against him once he received those Reaper upgrades. Talk about your fly in the ointment! Naruto will survive of course, and The Mass Effect universe is about to undergo another radical change here, folks! But the questions remain...will it be for better or worst? You decide, dear readers!**

**So...in the immortal words Atlas...**

**...Review, Would You Kindly? **

**R&R! =D**


	2. Pawn

**A/N: Alright ladies and gentlmen, good news and bad news. Good news first. I'm fresh out of ANOTHER surgery-hurts like hell, and my girl came back to me. Even better, My grandmother's all but recovered from congestive heart failure. Alas, my health is still in the red, and the docs say it ain't looking good. So...I just...wanted to let you all know about this. Somehow. Just in case death has plans to take me out of this sickly body of mine...hopefully it won't!**

**Anywho, I managed to put this up here at points between the forced anesthetic. Bad news is I still have more surgeries ahead. It's been great, guys. Really. ****I'm hanging tough though, despite everything life is throwing at me. Despite all that's happening, I don't intend to die quietly in a bed somewhere! On another note, there was a discrepancy mentioned with Kai Leng's age, but for the sake of that story, I'm tossing that and a few other things out the window. You'll soon see what I mean...**

**...you'll see. Now, here we go! I worked really hard on this despite my health!**

_"No matter what, we have to survive..._

_~?_

**Pawn**

The Illusive man was seated in front of an oval portal that looked out onto the frozen wastes of a planet in the Crescent Nebula. He could see the ruins of an abandoned mining operation in the foreground and a line of jagged peaks in the distance. It was a miserable place, but one that would ensure his privacy, which was very important to him.

It was his privacy and his love of seclusion that allowed Cerberus to exist, after all. Without Cerberus, without him, who would be there to champion the greater cause of mankind into the future? Certainly not the asari and the other people of this realm. Cerberus was a necessary evil, one needed to make and take humanity into the next era. Without it, humanity was doomed.

Experiments that his race deemed diabolical and genocidal would one day serve the needs of all mankind. Would he be hailed as a hero? Or denounced, as a villain? The Illusive man didn't much care. All that mattered to him, was humanity's continued existence and prosperity. That was all that mattered. If he'd be branded a traitor and a coward and fool, than it was the price he'd have to pay. One he'd gladly pay in his own blood if that meant the survival of his race in the times to come. He'd a vast array of pawns and puppets for that very purpose; pieces placed on a chess board of interstellar scale, arrayed against impossible odds.

It took a skilled player to maneuver his

And like chesss, sometimes pawns needed to be...sacrificed for the greater good.

A tone sounded, and a female voice said:

_"Doctor Lawson wishes to speak with you, sir."_

TIM restrained a small sigh. He already knew what this conversation would entail, having spoken with the man only hours before but he felt obliged to explain the situation nonetheless-to contain the situation-if nothing else. Henry was calling again to demand the capture of Naruto and Miranda, the two teenagers having escaped his facility only hours before and having used a relay to jump to God knew where. What's more, Miranda'd all but disabled the tracker on the shuttle, so there truly was no way of knowing where they had gone. But none of this was a cause for concern.

Events had solidified in the last solar day, events that promised wonderful results for the future of humanity...so long as Miranda's father stayed out of the picture. Unfortunately Henry wasn't the sort to see it that way, so the conflict had to be contained-neutralized-before it even began.

The holoprojector flared to life, revealing the likeness of Lawson, in all his towering glory. He was young yet but the first flecks of gray could still be seen in his thinning hair-scowl lines deeping his youthful face. Lawson was getting old, and it was beginning to show-both in his temperment and his work. They stared at one another for a long moment, neither man willing to speak. At last, the leader of Cerberus grew weary of the silence and cleared his throat, took a sip from his glass of bourbon, and spoke.

"I'm afraid my answer hasn't changed." Simple. Terse. To the point. No pleasantries issued and none given. "I won't be pursuing them."

"Why?" An equally harsh inquiry.

"Because what you're proposing isn't feasible. More importantly, its a waste of time."

"I'll increase your funding, tenfold."

"As I said, the answer is no."

Dissapointment was not an alien emotion for Henry Lawson. Miranda had failed to meet his expectations so many times-and Naruto even more-that he had been forced to learn the value of patience. Perhaps it could be said that he'd even grown used to it. Fury, however, was unaccustomed to him. He didn't know how to deal with it, how to channel it, focus it, as most men would. He felt impotent, powerless, helpless, _enraged_ that his legacy had slipped away right under hise nose, through his fingers, without so much as a second glance. And the Illusive Man refused to do anything about it!

"Why the devil not?!"

"Its not that simple, Henry." The Illusive man permitted himself a small smile as he removed a silver cigarrete case from the surface of the metal desk. The head of Cerberus selected a cigarette, set fire to it and took a deep drag. He liked the process, the taste, and the feel of nicotine entering his bloodstream. Words mingled with smoke. "Two children stole a baby, slaughtered your guards, and escaped from _your_ private facility. This is a personal matter, not a Cerberus one. My resources are sretched thin enough as it is."

Rage knotted Henry's visage, transforming his handsome features into a rictus of fury. "After all the funding I've given you over the years, _this_ is how you repay me?"

"I look after my own." TIM's reply was nothing short of cryptic. His next words however, were not. "You are no longer one of my own."

The larger man bristled, as though he could somehow melt the shadowy operator merely through the force of his gaze.

"I paid for _billions_ of dollars in research out of my own pocket-

"And believe me when I say, Cerberus appreciates your assistance, doctor Lawson. Your funds will be put to good use in the days to come." the words had just lost their honeyed coating. Now, they had an edge, cool and crisp, almost artic in its intensity. "However, I fail to see how the events that transpired under **your** watch, benefit my organization. I _also_ fail to comprehend just what made you think you could enroll one of my men on your payroll without my knowing about it. Thanks to you and your "legacy" I lost a good soldier today. Perhaps one of the best. Good men are hard to find. Great men, even more so."

Under normal circumstances, Henry might've realized he stood upon a precipiece; that whatever he said next might determine his fate. But he was too angry; losing Miranda and Oriana was one thing, losing Naruto, a human weapon in his own right and the only one of his kind, was another matter. The boy was the last of a great and powerful people, reborn with chakra and biotics that -if properly honed- could crack open a cruiser like a walnut. And now he was gone, out there somewhere in the great void with Miranda and Oriana. To make matters worse, it would take years for him to grow another "daughter" time he suddenly felt that he'd no longer hand. Everything was ruined, not because of him rather, Leng's failure to apprehend the boy. Ruined, everything was ruined...

_"Leng was a dog." _he snapped, losing himself in a rare bout of emotion_. _"If he could be killed by a boy, then he clearly wasn't worthy of his salary."

"Leng was a great man." TIM persisted, those glowing eyes burning like hot coals into Henry's skull. "I thought you were as well, once. But I see now that I was wrong."

Despite the distance between them, the room suddenly seemed colder, somehow.

"What do you mean?"

"You have become a liability, doctor Lawson." The Illusive Man continued, taking a silent satisfaction in the way that the color drained from the man's features, his pallid complexion suggesting he'd realized just where this deadly little game was going. "Your fortune has been of great use to us, but I see now that you value your own legacy over humanity. And that, cannot be tolerated." In a rare moment of emotion-surprising, even for him-TIM rose from his chair, beinging himself face to face with the hologram of Henry Lawson.

"I'm terminating our relationship, effective immediately."

For a heartbeat, the multi-millionaire actually felt a touch of fear. Then it was gone, quashed down by arrogance and anger.

"Y-You wouldn't dare."

"I've already taken the neccessary precautions." Even as he spoke TIM returned to his seat, the short-lived outbrurst vanishing with the smoke of his cigar. "Alliance forces are enroute to your compound as we speak-based on an anonymous tip. I'm sure they'll find yours experiments fascinating. Perhaps if you're lucky, they might take you alive." He took another drag of his cigarrette, and the puff of smoke serving to advertise his intentions. "And before you think to negotiate with your soon-to-be captors, I feel I should tell you that any Cerberus cells you may have knowledge of have been shut down or moved elsewhere, any and all data wiped from your computers. It's been a pleasure, doctor."

"You bastard," Henry growled, "You can't do this! You need me! Without my funding you'll be nothing! Do you hear me?! NOTHING!"

"Also taken care of."

There was an audible intake of breath. He activated his omni-tool, opened his account...and felt the blood drain from his face. The billions of credits that he'd accumulated with hics ompany were gone. His vast sums of wealth were nowhere to be seen, scrolling down the list in a series of seemingly endless zeroes

_"...what?"_

"It seems that "boy" you loathe so much has a vindictive streak." TIM allowed his lips to twitch upward, quirking in quiet triumph. "He's also quite the hacker. He sends his sincere regards...and your wealth with it. Even my best codebreakers weren't able to break into the system. Perhaps he has a place in my organization after all. And if your daughter is as 'perfect' as you claim, I'd gladly welcome her with open arms." He permitted a a single second to savor the look of shock that purpled Lawson's face at those words-the sudden realization that he had truly and utterly taken everything of value from him and discarded all the rest, swiftly proving too much for the man to bear.

"You...you...you...

Something broke in Henry Lawson then; perhaps it was the knowledge that he'd lost everything, perhaps it stood to reason that he'd had nothing to gain by pushing Naruto and Miranda so hard. Perhaps it was even the sound of the Alliance Marines beating down his door even as TIM reached toward arm of his chair to cancel their call. Whatever it was the subsuquent shriek of uninteilligible rage that erupted frm his throat lips sounded as though it belonged on an animal, not a man. He'd lost control; completely and utterly.

"YOU BASTARD! I WILL FIND YOU! I WILL END YOU! I-

"Goodbye, Mr. Lawson." TIM replied, his finger hovering over the switch. "It has been...a pleasure working with you."

_"DAMN YOU-_

That soft click signalled so much more than the end of their agreement; as the door broke down and a swarm of marines clamored into Henry's bunker. He didn't even have time to raise the pistol in his hand and fire a round into his head; even as it occurred to him that he might do so rather than suffer a life of confinement the first of many bodies struck him, knocking him to the floor. Henry was a man of comfort, he didn't have the strength to fight his captors as they crashed down against him, his body breaking like a sand castle as they beat him into ruthless submission...

* * *

_(Meanwhile)_

Miranda Lawson prided herself on self control. She was good at that. Always had been.

She'd learned to dettach herself from her own emotions; to ignore the pain of being anything less than perfect. Not good enough? Switch it off. Painful? Switch it off. She had always been able to shut down her feelings at a moment's notice wherever her father was concerned; it was the only way to endure the many pressures of being his daughter, of being forced to endure a legacy, a _dynasty _she wanted nothing to do with. She she simply shut down. And when she _couldn't_ shut down, when those words cut too deep and struck a raw nerve, she could always turn to Naruto.

The boy was a big brother to her in every sense of the word, save for blood. He had been the first of fa-_Henry's_ "children" to actually exist for more than a few days, he was also the first one to be kept. To this very day Miranda still didn't understand why Henry had kept him around all-not only had he been created from a separate sample, he could be downright insufferable at times. But, only to him. Never to her. When she had been "born" Naruto had been her pillar, her strength, something Henry Lawson would've scoffed at. The man wanted to make his damned mark on the galaxy, and he didn't care if he had to break a little girl to get it.

But Naruto did.

More than once she'd gone crying to him when she was younger, clamoring into his bed after suffering a nightmare. Begged him for attention, for the solace her "father", refused to give. She'd lost count of those times inumerable when everything had fallen apart; when she simply broke down on his shoulder, shed salty tears in his shirt when she'd been condemned her for being anything less than what he demanded. Perfection was not a goal for Miranda. It was a death sentence. Something she could seldom achieve and even when she did, no praise was given. It was simply expected.

Naruto might've complained sometimes when she came to him, but he never, ever turned her away. He was warmth and solace, while her father was cold as ice; and perhaps just as unfeeling. Even when his body was so ravaged from the doctor's tests that the mere act of touching caused him physical _pain, _Naruto was alwasy there for her. There was no way of knowing who-or what-she might've become without his steadying hands on her shoulders, the occasional word of wisdom drifting in her ear, reminding Miranda that life was beautiful; it was not_-she was not-_some tool, to be used and discarded as scientists saw fit. His defiance was open and constant, an everlasting reminder that they could never truly be controlled.

Then Oriana was born and everything had become...complicated.

Miranda had sworn to master her flagging emotions for her sister's sake, perhaps just as much as her own. More than once her father had threatened physical harm on her or Naruto's person if she did not pass this test or complete this exercise as per his exact instructions. For too long he'd used them as leverage against her. Now that they were free, she'd promised not to let her weakness show. _Damnit, she'd promised!_

But none of that mattered now; instead of the icy control in which she took so much pride, Miranda found herself on the other side of the spectrum altogether; frantically pushing an empty wrapper of omnigel against the blonde's bloody leg, as though in doing so she could somehow squeeze out the last few drops and close his gaping wound. The gel wouldn't do a damned thing for his broken arm and rib she reminded herself, but Leng's blade had cut deep into the tissue and severed an artery. Coupled with the shrapnel from the grenade and the overwhelming blood loss she was almost certain her companion had -or was- going into shock, his body shutting down after suffering such trauma. That he was still alive at all bespoke of his incredible willpower.

"Don't you dare go like this," she hissed between breaths, her voice hitching with raw emotion. "Don't you dare!"

Oriana's wails of distress could still be heard from the cockpit, further adding to the din raging around in the shuttle as well as her mind. Miranda stubbornly quashed her urge to comfort the babe. There would be time to comfort her sibling later. But Naruto might not have a later. She was left clutching at him now, sobbing, begging him-her only friend-not to go, not to leave her alone in this god-forsaken world. _Please don't die_, she mentally begged his prone form. _You can't die on me. Not like this. Not after everything you've done. Don't leave me alone. Not like this..._

The biotic had a mad urge - tears, terror, and all - to burst into giggles at the absurdity of the moment. It hit her all at once. She had come _this close_ to dying, three times. Once, by bullets; then, by biotic/tech attacks; and finally, by a hired assasin. Pretty exciting day, she had to admit. Now if Naruto would just wake the hell up!

"You bloody idiot," she whispered, softly now, fighting the urge to stroke his head with her bloodied fingers. "You can't die on me. Not when I haven't told you..." What followed next were three simple words, words that Uzumaki Naruto might never live to hear. This moment, it was her secret. He didn't know. He'd _never_ know. Here and now, alone in the dark, alone in this broken, battered shuttle. This slice of time was her possession, and no matter what happened in the next hour, nothing could take it away.

"Muah! What the fuck? Who the fuck? Where the fuck?!"

Exceeeeept that.

Bright blue eyes opened with a gasp, those coarse and angry expletitives crackling through the charged air like a whip. Miranda started in surprise, her teary stricken gaze snapping from the blonde's blood-soaked chest to those sapphire orbs she loved so muh. Naruto didn't so much as blink. His stone-faced stare, however, was a reacition all its own. For a long moment they simply faced each other, realizing that neither was in danger yet unable to move. An eternity. Then Miri dashed herself against him, flinging both arms round his neck. When the tears came-tears of joy-Miri was powerless agains them. She clung to him like that for a long moment refusing to let go, refusing to release him, suddenly aware of his own arms encirciling her, tracing small circles of fire through the thin fabric of her shirt.

_'Down, girl!'_

"Ass," she murmurred in his ear when she finally pulled away, not trusting herself to say-or do-anything else. "I thought I'd lost you."

"Almost did." the blond croaked, levering himself into a sitting position. His eyes scanned the cabin, scathingly. "Say, Leng's blade landed in here, right?"

Ah. He was concerned about that, was he? Yes, it had; flung against the shuttle by the explosion. She'd snatched it up merely as an afterthought-now she was glad she'd done so.

"Here." she nudged the glittering mono-molecular _Wakizashi-wielded by Kai Leng mere moments before his death_-into Naruto's good hand. The blond accepted it grimly, gripping the handle white-knuckled. He'd always had a thing for swords she supposed; whether that was in his ancestry, or simply something he'd gained Before she'd the chance to ask him what he was doing however, the blond took the edge and sliced into the flesh of his thigh in a sharp, decisive movement. What in the-

"W-What are you doing?!"

"Shrapnel," he muttered without looking up, working the blade against the clots. "Trapped in the wound. Can't heal. Gotta get it out." The disruptor sword hummed and crackled as it cooked away the last of the blood staining the blade. A pained hiss leapt from his lips, and her heart lurched with it. Seconds later he dug something out. Something metal. Then another. And another. And another still. He picked out each piece with a frightening dispassion, seemingly uncaring for the way her emotions wrenched whenever he tugged the shards out. At last he was done, the floor of the shuttle a bloody mess, but the offending pieces of metal picked clean from the wound.

"Beautiful." he murmurred at last, the blade slipping from his fingers, crashing to thefloor with a clatter. "That oughta do it."

Miranda risked a glance at his leg. How could he be satisfied with this? The bleeding had only just stopped!

"But your injury...

"I'm alright." he touched a hand to his leg, and though it came away bloody, it was clear he was no longer in any immediate danger. "See? Medigel kicked in."

"You almost died, you ass!"

Naruto simply took her fears in stride.

"Relax." he finally turned to look at her; his forehead pressing a small circle of warmth to her own in reassurance, his unbroken arm enclosing her in a loose cage of warmth. "I'll be fine." He probably meant the gesture simply to calm her, but the momenth his head brushed up against hers, her hormones leaped into overdrive. It was always like this whenever she was with him; her mind was muddled, constantly out of focus. So when Naruto moved to embrace her, Miri, overcome with joy, simply reacted.

Naruto blinked, wondering why her eyes were glistening, why she reached a hand up to cup his cheek.

"Miri, what're you-

All doubts and fears were tossed to the wayside as their mouths touched softly. Miranda ran her tongue along Naruto's bottom lip, begging to deepen the kiss, and Naruto baffled by the liplock-made the mistake of nigh but parting his lips for his fellow escapee. Her mouth tingled from the contact as her heart hammered in her chest. She'd just given him her first kiss without so much as a second thought, without considering if he even remotely felt the same. She was only fourteen-fifteen in a week-and here she was kissing someone who probably saw her as nothing more than a sister-_Oh!_

That thought shattered as he crushed her to him with his good wrist, her slim body colliding against his with surprising force. Hope burst within her, a supernova of swelling hope budding within the young girls chest as he held her there, never taking his lips from hers. It suddenly occurred to her that, in all likelihood, this was his first kiss as well. And then it was done, leaving him pulling away while she silently ached for more.

"I...should probably do something about my leg now." he whispered quietly, cheeks burning.

"Y-Yes," she flushed, stammering. "Right. You should probably do that." An awkward silence stood between them after that, broken only by the sound of their breathe, and Oriana's happy gurgling in the cockpit. Finally Miranda broke it.

"Naruto, I-

"Shh." a quiet shush as he turned back to the task at hand. "Let me concentrate."

Naruto grunted and pinched the gaping tear in his leg together as best he could. Steam arose from rthe wound, the scent of warmed flesh filling her nostrils. An urge to gag rose within her, strong and powerful, but she managed to resist, somehow. When he finally took his fingers away, all that remained was a spot of pink skin-a far cry from the ragged tear it had been before. Miranda couldn't think of the fact that he'd just kissed her only moments efore, her mind could only dwell on the fact that there wasn't a _hole_ in Naruto's leg anymore.

"How?"

"Regeneration." he muttered obliquely, his head slumping back into her lap with a pained grunt. "I'll be fine." Right. Henry had kept Naruto for that very reason; he had the uncanny abilitiy to heal from all but the most life-threatening of wounds. It wasn't possible for him to regenerate something like an arm, or even a hand, but a hole in his leg? Quite. Which brought her to the next order of businiess: his head was in her lap. In! Her! Lap! Oh god. Oh christ. Oh gooooood.

Miranda's cheeks burned a bright cherry red, her face aflush as she finally came to terms with the fact that his head was still resting there on her legs, his soft snores sending subtle vibrations coursing up and down her thighs. He just looked...so peaceful. Unbidden, her hand stroked one of his whiskered cheeks. He stirred at her touch, groaning softly.

_Naruto cares about me. Naruto is mine. Nobody can take him away_.

"Hey, Miri," Naruto muttered quietly. "Anyone ever tell you ya have soft hands?"

His words sent tendrils of warmth shooting through her core, offset only by his dreary yawn.

"Anyone ever mention you have a thick skull?" but the words were weak, and withour rancour. He chuckled at that.

"Guess what?"

"What?"

"Robbed your dad."

"You did _what?!"_ Miranda barely managed to squeak the last word out.

"Yep," even with closed eyes, his smile was barely contained; threatening to leap right off those whiskered cheeks. "Hacked his account and sent all his funds to some shadowy organization. Cerberus, I think. Hopefully that'll keep 'em off our backs." Neither of them had any way of knowing at the time, but that singular actions had saved their lives, forever setting them on a path they would walk for the next twenty years. But for this moment, here and now, they were just a couple of scared kids, rejoicing in their freedom.

"I'd thought I'd lost you, Naruto." she replied in a panicked whisper, her fingers left fire on his upper bicep. Such a feeling was not uncommon now, they'd always found small ways to touch each other: familiar smacks, taps, pats, and even pinches when the mood was right. Neither of them felt any shame in it. They wanted to touch each other, it brought that desirable fire that Naruto felt melt his bones. He followed after her, turning his head to follow her hand. There were bloodstains there, all his own, thankfully.

"Gonna rest for a bit...

And then he was under again, his chest rising and falling steadily. But not for long.

"Citadel Security!" A deep voice boomed out, reverberating through the bulkhead to encompass the small room. "Come out with your hands on your heads and you will not be harmed!"

Naruto frowned, his eyes scrunching in feigned sleep. "I take it that's the welcoming party?"

"I suppose it is."

Belatedly, Miranda remembered where they were. Right. Of course. She'd set the shuttle on a course to the Citadel as they'd hit the relay. The autopilot must've naviagated them into one of the docking bays while she was tending to his wounds. Without a working comm, she had no way of knowing whether or not they'd been hailed beforehand; her attenion had been fixated upon keeping her companion in one piece until only moments ago. But judging by the authoritave bark and banging upon their shuttle's door, their prescence wasn't exactly welcome here. _Oh, God._ She suddenly realized that the shuttle had a _Cerberus _marking on its hull. Security probably thought they were terrorists!

"This is your last warning!"

That flanged tone of voice told Miranda much, a turian, in the service of Citadel Security, or C-Sec or short. Lovely. Human-Turian relations were strained at best, thanks in part to the aftermath of the First Contact War and its fallout. Why couldn't it be a salarian, or an asari? Then again, if they thought they were with Cerberus, She had just enough time for that thought before the door sparked-hacked, no doubt-and whooshed open into itself,

A turian bounded inside, his assault rifle at the ready. "Freeze, Cerberus!"

His bright blue eyes took her in at a glance, then fell to Naruto's prone form, mandibles flutteing in complex motions to form a frown. At least, Miranda assumed it was a frown. She didn't know enough about Turian's to read their facial expressions well. For all she knew he could be smiling. Miranda feared what he might say. What he might do? Would he shoot them just for being in a Cerberus shuttle, no questions asked? Or would he attempt to interrogate them, then shoot them?

Oriana chose that very moment to start bawling again startling everyone into action. Naruto lurched upright only to collapse, clutching at his ribs, Miranda moved to defend him, and poor Ori wailed even louder, utterly upset with the tense atmosphere. Thankfully the officer held fire, seeming to realize two teenagers and an infant weren't much of a threat.

Eventually he seemed to take pity on them.

"Control, I need a medical team, stat!" To her relief, he lowered his weapon and immediately began barking orders into his omnitool. "We've got wounded!"

* * *

Huerta Memorial Hospital was well known for its healing atmosphere, perhaps even better for its excellent-not to mention expensive-doctors and services. Many patients were ushered in here daily, some from firefights down in the Wards, others for less detrimental injuries. It was here that Naruto found himself ushered, under armed guard, to be questioned as well as treated for his injuries. He'd been able to regenerate the hole with his leg, but his broken arm and fractured ribs were not so easily dealth with, and Miranda bore some superficial injuries as well.

But why the helll did they have to be in separate rooms?!

"Wha...?"

He blinked, broken from his reveries as someone tapped his shoulder.

"You shattered three bones in your right arm and fractured two of your left ribs." the asari doctor answered him calmly, glancing from her chart back to him. "What did ya do, tackle a krogan?" Naruto visibly cringed, recalling exactly how hard Leng had hit him back in Australia. And he'd been human! A krogan, right. Whatever that was, he never wanted to hit one of those. Ever. A percursory glance at the casts encasing his arm told him he probably wouldn't have much of an arm _left_ if he tried.

"Something like that, yeah." he tried not to stare but...she was purple! And those crests on her head...

"You act like you've never seen an asari before."

Naruto started, realizing he'd been caught staring.

...I havent."

"Goddess, kids these days." the woman muttered to herself. "Well, the name's Tei'a. I'll be in charge of your physical therapy. We've taped up your ribs with some synthetic fibers and a bit of bone weave, so long as ya exercise routinely, you should heal within the week. Until then, you're confined to the grounds. Understood?"

Naruto muttered something under his breath, but nodded at her encouraging stare.

"Good." Tei'a nodded, her emerald gaze swiveling towards the door. "Alright, send them in!"

Naruto didn't have a chance to ask "who" before the door swept open and a harried looking Miranda rushed in, her baby sister balanced on one hip. She'd been patched up with medigel since he'd seen her last, all those minor cuts and bruises still slathered in a damp sheen of the miracle ointment.

"Is he alright?" she blurted out, her dark eyes immediately locking on the doctor. "He doesn't have a radial fracture, does he? Or a shattered larynx? Or-

"Easy kid," Tei'a made a placating motion with both hands. "Don't have a heart attack. Your boyfriend's fine."

"He's not my-" Miranda bit off the last word, cheeks coloring rosy with the implication.

Naruto blinked, momentarily baffled by the knowledge she'd just displayed. Then he saw Oriana.

"Hey, Ori."

"Ba!" she squealed, her pudgy little hands reaching for him.

"No no, Ori," Miranda shushed, "He can't hold you yet."

"My arms feeling fine, thank-you very much." Naruto replied. "But how did you know that?"

She smiled thinly. "I read quickly, my memory is excellent, and I don't sleep a lot."

The doctor blinked. "Smart girl."

"That's funny. _You're_ funny." Deadpan face.

"Alright, alright," Tei'a shrugged. "I can see when I'm not wanted. Gingerly, she laid the datapad on the counter. "Call me if his condition worsens."

"Right."

Miranda waited until the asari had departed the room, then she rose in a blur. Almost before he could ask she reached out and placed her hand on his bad shoulder, massaging soothingly. Oriana contented herself with her hands, reaching down to pull at Naruto's hair while her sister worked. Everything was perectly fine until she decided to plant a kiss on the back of his head. Naruto shivered, fighting the urge to turn around and kiss her again.

"Are you alright?" Miranda whispered in his ear.

"Hey, it happens. But we're all ok, no harm done. So how bad was it?" Miri's hand left a trail of fire along his arm and his tone became laced with huskiness. He was suddenly reminded of their shared kiss on the shuttle back when they were almost certain they were going to die. Only they hadn't. And now he had to find a way to deal with these feelings threatening to explode up out of his chest. Sighing, he resolved himself to answer Miranda's question.

"Nah, I should be fine within a week. The doc said-

He would've said more, had not the doors whoosed open once more, admitting a salarian. He only knew what _they _looked like because he'd seen them in one of Miranda's books. Reading really wasn't his thing, but this salarian baffled him more than most. It wasn't just the armor he wore; it was the way he carried himself. As if he belonged here. An authority figure then? _Great,_ he blanched, more questions. It took everything he had not to bolt and stand still.

_Easy there, we haven't done anything wrong..._

"Jondum Bau." the salarian introduced himself rapidly, yet cheerily at the same time. "Special Tactics and Reconassaince." His thin lips twitched in a barely noticeable smile. "Pleased to meet you. You were ones on the shuttle this morning...?" The way he spoke reminded Naruto of a hamster on coffee, it was a struggle just to keep up. Special Tactics and Reconasi_-oh fuck!_ A Spectre! Even he knew what that title entailed-uneducated though he might still be. It meant that this Jondum guy could do whatever the hell he wanted and get away with it. Miranda grabbed his hand and held tight as the alien took up a position on the wall opposite them, his slender arms folded before his chest.

"Escaped from Earth?" Jodum quizzed, his eyes shifting to Miranda. "Related to Henry Lawson?"

The girl choked, but Naruto managed a nod.

"Was arrested by Alliance, today." the spectre supplied, unflinching at their own reaction. "Badly beaten-in critical condition. May not survive. Thought you should know." Miranda barely stifled a gasp of shock; Naruto's smile was positively beatific in its intensity. So there was a god, after all. Good! Bastard got what he deserved.

"Good, good." but the salarian wasn't yet finished. "Affiliated with Cerberus?"

"Us? Um...no?"

"Better." Bau nodded. "Cerberus ties...problematic. Makes interrogation easier. Have some more questions for you. DNA test confirms you have traits descended from shinobi..."

The two teens exchanged a glance and a groan.

_It would prove to be a long evening._

* * *

**A/N: And there we go. Events are already spiralling out of control, Henry Lawson is out of the picture and probably dead-THANK GOD-Naruto and Miranda find themselves on the Citadel, taking the first steps into an unstable, untested relationship, and now TIM is after them. Will they join Cerberus or no? Events are spiralling rapidly towards the center here and though some changes may be minor at first, all will be revealed in time. But what will happen with Cerberus? You decide, dear readers!**

**So...in the immortal words Atlas...**

**...Review, Would You Kindly? And of course, enjoy the preview! Guess who we get to see next time!**

**(Preview)**

_"Alright," She spat to the side, her eyes were a molten brown. "Who the fuck're you?"_

_"I could ask you the same question! I saved your ass!"_

_"He was dead already, just didn't know it."_

_Naruto glowered at the girl, uncaring of all the eyes in the Citadel watching them._

_"Hey...thanks for helping me out with that guy, back there." the girl murmurred half-heartedly. "Coulda taken him myself, though." Naruto seriously doubted that. She was a skinny, scrawny thing, somewhere in her teenage years. Her auburn was long, matted with grease and blood. She looked, for all intensive purposes, like she'd just come out of hell. Naruto found himself empathizing. They had that much in common, at least, besides the obvious. To think, he'd be beating down a robber first day out of the hospital..._

_"What's your name?"_

_Chocolate brown eyes met his own, and Naruto nearly flinched. The pain there, the suffering, the horrors she'd been through...it almost made him vomit. Looked like his gift for telempathy was still intact. Damn Henry to hell for cramming all this tech into his head..._

_The girl's expression told much; as though she'd just bitten into a sour lemon._

_"Jack."_

_Jack looked, well...jacked up, for lack of a better term. Naruto had thought he was in a sorry state._

_The child was half-naked, for starters. She wore a black halter-top and matching simple briefs that would look spartan and military in their simplicity if not for their small size. Her only accessory was a simple strap that ran from her left shoulder to her right hip that bisected the modest swell of her budding breasts - and protruding above her shoulder was the hilt of a...the **hell?** Was that supposed to be a club, or something? And here he'd thought Leng had given him some serious injuries back when he'd escaped..._

_Jack looked worse. Beyond the arm injury, her upper lip was marked with blood from her nose, and one of her eyes was reddened and in the process of swelling closed, and her bent-forward shuffle was looking like some sort of leg injury._

_"Maybe we should get you looked at..._

_"Naruto!"_

_Both teens swung around just in time to see Miranda exit a nearby elevator, a fussy Oriana wrapped up in her arms. "I was looking for you..._

_She trailed off the moment she saw Jack._

_"Who the hell's the cheerleader?"_

_Miri bristled. "What did you just call me?"_

_Naruto groaned. "Oh, this isn't going to end well..._

**R&R! =D**


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